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Tributes

There are many who served in the air force and left their mark in a quiet unassuming manner. They are not well known war heroes, or highly visible senior officers. Yet their contribution cannot be ignored. They are fondly remembered by their coursemates, family members and friends - This section hosts tributes to such unsung officers and men of the IAF who will forever be remembered.

Air Chief Marshal Idris Hasan Latif (IND/1804 GD(P)), former Chief of Air Staff and WW2 Veteran has passed away in Hyderabad on 30th April 2018. His death marks just about six months since he lost his wife, Mrs Bilkees Latif. ACM Latif has been unwell the past year . And his passing away less than an year of losing the Marshal of the Air Force is a double blow to the IAF fraternity.

Its an end of an era - Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh, the only five star rank officer in the IAF, a legendary and much beloved name in the Air Force Fraternity is no more. He was the Air Chief during the critical 1965 India-Pakistan war at a young age of 46. He passed away yesterday (16th September 2017) in New Delhi. A statement from the Ministry of Defence said he was admitted to the hospital on Saturday morning following a cardiac arrest, and breathed his last at 7.47 PM. Prior to his demise he was one of the last surviving officers of the IAF who had trained at RAF Cranwell, and also one of the last surviving DFC awardees of the IAF.

With a heavy heart, we learnt about the passing away of Wing Commander Hoshang Patel of Bombay. He passed away today 25th January 2017, at the age of 96. A WW2 veteran airman and pilot who served in two tours in Burma, one of the few to do it as both an erk as well as a pilot. Hoshang Sir was the one who gave the spark to the fire of WW2 research that this website has carried out over the years.

Group Captain Kapil Bhargava (3939 F(P) who passed away on 17th December 2014, a was a good friend and a supporter for this website . He contributed so many articles on History that he had his own "sub-site" on Bharat Rakshak. He was also one of those behind the Gnat Get-together event and the Gnat Golden Jubilee website (now hosted on bharat-rakshak). Several tributes rolled in when he left for his final flight. we reproduced two such tributes to him in this page.

A legendary pilot and officer, Air Marshal Johnny William Greene passed away on 16 October 2013. Born 21 March 1929, Greene was commissioned in the IAF on 16 June 1951 (4093 F(P)) . He served as a Hunter pilot before moving on the Folland Gnat and making a name for himself in the 1965 and 1971 wars.

A veteran of three wars - WW2, 1947-48 Kashmir War and the 1965 India-Pakistan War, Air Vice Marshal John Jasper Bouche (Pop) passed away today in Perth,Australia,after a brief illness. Group Captain Kapil Bhargava writes a short tribute to him

We are all grieved to learn of passing away of Micky Blake on June 9th, 2012. He was 88 Years old . Micky was a legend in IAF. There is much that needs to be said about Micky, such as his winning the Sword of Honour in his Pilots Course, performance at the PAI and Day Fighter Leader Courses and his leadership qualities. . . .

This article narrates the career of Wg Cdr "Horace" Sahgal, commissioned just towards the end of the second world war, who was one of the earliest pilots to see action in the 1947-48 War, and later fly operations in the 62 War as well.